When I Was 13: A New Day Will Come (REUPLOAD!)
by carryjames48
Summary: My other account was deleted so I'm reposting this story. Yes, another girl in SBM...but two? The bullied Samantha goes along with Gordie, Chris, Vern and Teddy and meet up an old friend, Dana, on the way, all of whom have problems. But love sparkles on that trip and there might be happiness...or a love square. I know it's been done a lot of times but mine is different
1. Chapter 1: The Missing Teenager

**Hey guys. I didn't like how my other story was going so I deleted and my other account James Carry won't let me log in so I've decided to re-upload the story "When I Was 13: A New Day Will Come" with some changes. Hope you guys like it-James.**

**WARNING: Love triangle, swear words, bulimia, OCD, self harm, bigorexia, anxiety attacks, physical abuse, molestation, bullying, neglect**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except Samantha**

**A New Day Will Come**

**Chapter 1: The Missing Teenager**

How did I change before Labour Day, 1959? Well, I was nothing special in the first place. I was just the 13 year old Samantha 'Sam' Daylife. I remember when I heard about Ray Brower for the first time. Around me were three of my best friends, Gordie LaChance, Chris Chambers, and Teddy Duchamp. It was like any normal day…until I heard a knock on our treehouse.

"That's not the secret knock," said Gordie, shuffling cards in his hands very slowly. Then we heard a whiny, high voice cry "C'mon, guys, I forgot the secret knock." My head turned to my four friends. All our eyes were locked on each other. In unison, we spoke the name of who the voice belonged to. "…VERN!"

Gordie went over to unlock the cellar door and we saw Vern come out. "Oh guys, you're not gonna believe this," he chanted. "What is it?" asked Gordie. "Oh guys, you're gonna flip!" Vern said. "Just tell us what it is," Chris groaned. "Oh my goodness, guys. Oh my-" Then, all four of us, angered at Vern screamed in unison "JUST TELL US WHAT IT IS, VERN!"

Vern held up his hands as if he were to surrender and said, "Okay, okay. Settle your kettle!" He then cleared his throat and said: "…You guys wanna go see a dead body?"

8 words. Those 8 words-eight, not ten, not twelve-just eight-would change my life. Even after Vern explained how he had learned about the whereabouts of the missing teen, Ray Brower, by eavesdropping under his family's porch, I still couldn't believe it.

Teddy spoke up: "I know the Back Harlow Road! My dad and I used to fish for cossies out there! The train tracks are right there!"

I nodded. "If Brower went blackberry picking… he probably crossed the tracks to get to the forests quicker."

Vern started to get excited. "Yeah… yeah, and then a train must have come along and," he punched his hand, "el smacko."

Chris, our leader, said, "Hey, guys, I bet if we found Ray Brower, we could get our name in the papers."

I jumped up, a big smile lit up on my face. "Yeah! We could even be on TV!"

"Sure!" Chris yelled happily.

"We'll be heroes!" Teddy yelled, striking his best heroic pose.

"Yeah!" Chris yelled again. Gordie began to whoop and I smiled at him, to which he returned with those gorgeous teeth.

Vern had to spoil our excitement. "I don't know. What are we going to tell our folks?"

Gordie spoke up for the first time in five minutes. "How about this: we tell all of our folks we're tenting out in your back field, you tell your folks you're sleeping over at Teddy's, and then we'll all say we're going to the drag races the next day. We're rock solid until tomorrow night."

Chris said, impressed, "Man, that's a plan and a half."

Vern, always the party pooper, said, "But then when we find him, our folks will know that we didn't go to the drag races and we'll get hided!"

"Nobody will care!" Teddy exclaimed, "Because everyone'll be so jazzed about what we found, that they won't dare hide us!"

"Yeah!" I said. I was really starting to like this plan!

"Well, my dad'll probably hide me anyway, but hell, it's worth a hiding!" Chris exclaimed. "Let's do it. What do you say?"

"I'm in," Teddy said.

"Gordie?"

"Sure."

"Vern?"

"I don't know."

"_Vern_…" we all groaned.

"Come on, Verno," I encouraged him.

When Vern still wouldn't agree, Chris, Teddy, Gordie and I all ran over and gave him noogies until he finally said, "Fine, fine, I'll do it."

We all cheered, and then Chris turned to me. "How about you, Sam?" he asked, looking at me with hopeful eyes.

Gordie smiled with just as much hope. "Yeah, what would a trip like this be without the mother of our group?"

Teddy agreed. "Exactly. Who else is going to keep all of us calm and content."

Vern nodded. "You could sing us another one of those songs you hear from those million musicals you go to."

I laughed. I loved how these guys knew everything about me. "Of course I'll come, you guys."

We all celebrated our quest for fame. How the five of us could have stayed friends since Kindergarten is beyond me. We're so different…we're all outcasts. But maybe that's what keeps us bonded.

I could talk about my friends for hours: Teddy… oh god, Teddy! Teddy was insane, crazy…off with his head! He was pretty wild and rebellious, and always picked on poor Vern. He and I had a rocky relationship. When I first met the guys, he was the most hesitant to accept a girl in their "gang." Yet, I think out of everyone I understood him the most, and he certainly understood me more. He probably belonged to the most messed up family in history: when he was six years old, his father held Teddy's ear to a stove and nearly burnt it off. His father was then sent away to a rehabilitation centre and no one has heard from him since. Teddy had sandy, shaggy hair with hazel eyes that were magnified by glasses a gazillion inches thick. He also had the weirdest laugh I have ever heard in my life. There really aren't any words to describe it: like what you get when you put an old man with smoker's cough and a rusty nail being wrenched out together! That's what it sounded like!

Vern was probably the most normal person of our gang. He had a normal family compared to everyone else, except for his older brother, Billy, of course. Billy was in with the deadliest gang in town, the Cobras. Chris's brother, Eyeball, was in the gang too, and the gang was led by the most arrogant, most idiotic person in town. Two words…Ace Merrill. Vern was the all-around good kid so it was quite a surprise that he ended up with us. I constantly had to protect him from Teddy's pathetic "two-for-flinching" punch that he had always inflicted on Vern. Verno (as we called him) was extremely tubby, had brown hair and blue eyes.

Good-old Chris was the leader of our gang. He was very protective of us all and never backed down in a fight. Just the way he stood there, facing the villain with his muscular body, electrifying blue eyes, and a strong yet smooth fist ready for punching was just so…oh, alright, I'll admit it: I have a HUGE crush on Chris Chambers; I have ever since I've met him. There was just something about him… a glow of charisma that sucked you in and kept you fascinated. He also came from a bad family, and every single person in town just knew he'd turn out bad… including Chris. Aside from his amazing eyes, he had a gorgeous buzz cut blond hair. He had a tough persona and figure yet was one of the sweetest guys you would ever meet. My crush for him was unrequited. Despite the fact that he would never love someone like me, there were many more reasons that would keep us apart…many of them I will touch on later.

Gordie was the quietest in our group. He was smart, soft-spoken, and was only really lively and funny when he was with us. His life family-wise was the most tragic story in the world: last year in June, Gordie was molested by his by his brother's girlfriend and she and his brother died the same night in a car accident, and that was eleven months ago. He was never the same after that-he had OCD, bigorexia and occasionally self-harmed. He always had to do everything perfect, he always exercised continuously and he always covered his arms. His parents were never any help-they were so affected by Denny's death that they take no notice to Gordie's disorders. I had conflicting feelings about Gordie. And by feelings I mean LOVE feelings. He had soft, brown hair that nearly fell into his brown doe eyes, and a sweet, young face. He was adorable and so decent and nice. The way he flashed his smile was just so…hypnotic. I had always loved Chris but ever since I remembered, I had been attracted to Gordie. He was the kindest person I've ever met. He helps you and always knows what to say when you're down.

As for me? Well, I was just Samantha "Sam" Daylife. Good old Sam, the girl in the rough. Just Sam. Sam who was abandoned by her alcoholic father when her mom was 7 months pregnant with the now three year old Riley. Sam, whose mother is the biggest eater and most obese woman in town who turned to food after she was abandoned. Sam, the tomboy who could annihilate anyone in a game of baseball.

The boys would treat me like any one of us, despite the fact that I was a girl. A girl who was always unpopular and unlucky in love. Ha…well, that was about to change!

**How did you like it? Yeah, still the same as the original story I wrote on my other account but I felt as if I needed to add in the molestation and disorders for Gordie. Idk why. Oh well! Continue reading!**


	2. Chapter 2: Family Ties

**Chapter 2: Family Ties**

Ever since I can remember, Gordie walked me home. It was easy because he lived five houses down from me but I kept on insisting that I wasn't a princess locked in a tower, I didn't need a bodyguard with me, but he did it anyway.  
As we were walking home, Gordie looked at me. "Sam, do you think I'm weird? Or dumb? Or scrawny? Am I a failure?" he interjected out of the blue. I stopped dead in my tracks. How could he think that? He was the sweetest guy ever. "Of course not, why do you ask?" I asked.  
He replied, "Its just…me and Joyce broke up yesterday." "Really?" I asked, surprised he hadn't told us before. "Yeah, she said I was too strange." "You're not, LaChance," I replied, "You're awesome!"  
"Thanks," he said with a sad smile, "But I just see myself as a failure."  
Oh no! This was what caused him to have OCD…the thought of being a failure. I took his hand in mine. He looked up.  
"Do you want to talk about it?" I said. "Nah," Gordie said, "I might go _off _again."  
Oh right. See, Gordie's trademark of OCD was this thing where he needed everything he did to be 9/10. He needed his room to be 9/10 clean, he needed to walk out of the door in 9/10 quality, he needed to eat 9/10 and if he didn't, he would exercise for hours or suffer an anxiety attack. It was quite scary. I saw it the first time. He would walk through the door 5 times, he would continuously study if he didn't get 91%, he would record every flaw he made in a book. He would spend hours on end checking if he had locked the door properly, if he turned off the lights, if the oven door was closed, if he had everything in his bag. It was all quite sad.  
I smiled and tousled his smooth brown hair as we continued to walk. Then, we were frozen in our tracks. Someone came out from the corner, walking right before us.  
The worst person possible stood before me…Mandy Kit. Mandy Kit was the most arrogant, nosy, bitchiest girl in the whole grade. She was one of those sluts who gossip behind other peoples back, talk shit about them, start pointless drama, begin a fight and then make herself look like the victim. This was the case with Gordie two years ago, when she pushed his buttons then told the teacher he was bullying her after he reacted, and with her best friend, Cara, last year who had her boyfriend taken away from Mandy. I was her friend last year and she was nice to me then. I was _so _popular actually. But since I started hanging out with all my friends, she turned everyone against and started being a bitch. But that's not why I hated her…I hated her because she would to anything to be, and had a major chance of being Chris' girlfriend.  
"What's up, Sumo?" she snarked. It was the usual greeting I got. She called me sumo because she thought I looked like my mom who everyone thought was twice the size of a sumo wrestler. "Oh no wait, it's Swamp?" Mandy snarled. "It's Sam," I told her in annoyance. "Oh right," sung Mandy, "Isn't that a boy's name? I'm surprised you can afford surgery to turn your vag into a mag seeing as your mom spends half a million dollars on food each year." "Go away, Mandy," said Gordie. "Oh, hey Gory!" she cheered, "Be careful, there's a jeep coming." Gordie turned around to the road, only to find that Mandy had lied. He turned around, tears forming in his eyes. |  
"Sorry, Samantha's fatness blinded me and I thought there was a jeep," Mandy smirked, making my head drop down, "You better look out for jeeps though, LaChance. Don't want to end up in a grave right next to your loser brother." "  
She leant in further and whispered in Gordie's ear "You don't want to be raped either…"  
Gordie was fighting back tears. It was so obvious. Any comment about his brother hurt him. But a comment about his molestation hurt him more. Suddenly, I saw Mandy trace her fingers down his shirt and just as she reached down to his jeans and it wasn't to be flirtatious...it was to be traumatizing. Just as Gordie began to cry at the familiar feeling of his hands near his crotch…I pulled Gordie into a half-hug and faced Mandy. "Leave us alone and go blow your little butler."  
Mandy scoffed and said "Whatever, Rhinoceros. Just listen to me. I know the way you look at my boyfriend and let me give you some advice-crushes on boys that will never happen normally make girls put on about 30 pounds, but in your case close to 90. Let's face it, Fatty Boomba; he doesn't like you. Why would he like a girl who takes up two seats in the auditorium when he can have a skinny, rich, hot girl who can sit on his lap without squashing him completely? See you in the wrestling ring." She finally left.  
I turned to Gordie who was looking up and rubbing his eyes. But then I realised he was having an anxiety attack-I knew it was an anxiety attack. It began with muscle tension. Then shaking and trembling as my heart beat faster. I would be sweating even though I felt very cold. Gordie nearly felt as if he was choking. He became delirious and dizzy. Then there was rapid breathing, having feelings of shortness of breath, and breath holding. He was unfocused and had difficulty concentrating. He was easily startled. There was numbness and 'pins and needles' in his arms and legs. He began having headaches, stomach aches and backaches. As he began breathing rapidly, I heard him gasp "My bag…my bag." I remembered. I got his bag and began rummaging through it as fast as I could. I finally found a bottle of pills and quickly put two in my palm and shoved them in Gordie's mouth. I took him into my arms where his breathing slowed down and he regained consciousness.  
"It's ok," I soothed, "Just 'cause she spends her life being fed grapes by chambermaids while we're out living our life doesn't make her better than anyone." Gordie look up and smiled. I put my arm around his shoulders and so did he. We then continued our walk, me placing my head on his shoulder. As we walked, I couldn't help but think about Mandy's comments…and how true they were. "I know," said Gordie randomly. I turned my head sideways. "Know what?" I asked. "I know that you're thinking you're fat," he said. I put my head down, not trying to give into his mind-reading. He knew me all to well and I loved him for it.  
"C'mon, Sam," Gordie said, making my head turn, "You can't let her get to you. You're not fat, by the way. Your mother was only sad and turned to food. If you let Mandy do the same thing to you then you will end up just like her!"  
I smiled, looking up to him. "Thanks," I said.  
"I know what it feels like," he said, "To be insecure about your body. To be so desperate to be what society wants you to be. You should know too..."  
I did know. One day he started eating healthily and, once at night, exercised for two and a half hours straight. However, whenever he exercised and no change happened to his body, he felt like a failure and became addicted to protein shakes. I rested my head on his shoulders and walked down the path.  
Once I got to my doorway, I yelled what we always yelled to each other: "See ya!"  
Gordie yelled back, "Not if I see you first!" as he walked to his house.  
I shut the door behind me and took off my shoes, kicking them on the front veranda.  
"SAMMY'S HOME! SAMMY'S HOME! SAMMY'S HOME!" I heard my three-year-old brother, Riley, scream as he waddled through the house to give me a hug.  
I couldn't help but laugh. I was God in Riley's eyes and he never missed an opportunity to greet me home. "Hey there, Riding Riley," I laughed scooping him up and kissing him on the cheek, brushing back the black hair on his forehead.  
I put him down and he started jumping, looking like he wanted to pee! "Sammy! Sammy! Sammy! Sammy! Guess what! Guess what! Guess what! I wrote a story about you and Chris and Gordie and Teddy and Vern. Come and see it! Please, please, please, please, please, please!"  
"Okay, okay, calm your farm! You're on a sugar high today, aren't you Riley?" I said before he dragged me by my pinky up stairs. When he pulled out a piece of paper from his desk and put it in my hands, I couldn't see anything but sgwiggled lines all over the page. Thankfully, Riley read it out to me.  
"Once upon a time, there were four boys and one girl. They were called Sammy, Chrissy, Gordie, Verny and Teddy. One day, they found a bird on the street who had lost its mommy. They gave the bird to Dr. Riley Daylife and the bird was fixed. THE END!"  
I clapped and whooped as he flashed one of those adorable smiles. "Aw, Riding Riley, I love it! I'll go put it up in my room right now," I said as I took the piece of paper gently out of his hands and took it down the hall to my room.  
After I had pinned the paper up, I started to get everything I needed for the quest to find Ray Brower. I got my canteen, my sleeping bag and a First Aid kit. As I went to the cupboard to find a torch, I found something…and began to cry. It was a card my dad gave me on my seventh birthday. It was only three years ago and I still remembered it…it was only three years ago and I still remember the day my dad abandoned us…

_CRACK! It was the sound of shattering glass that made me abandon my focus on the Baseball game I was watching. I turned my head and saw my Dad running through the house. He had such a gaunt appearance-thin bones that were exposed by a singlet with alcohol stained over it. My Mum was running after him. Well, not really running. She was more waddling with the baby she carried in her stomach._

_"BRIAN! YOU'VE BEEN DRINKING!" she screamed, trying to pull him back. Dad simply spun around and slapped her across the face, causing her to land on the couch._

_I ran over to Dad and said "DON'T HIT HER!" "YOU DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO," he screamed, "I AM SICK OF ALL OF YOU! SAY GOODBYE BECAUSE I'M LEAVING!"_

_My Mum ran after him and said "What about the baby?" She began to rub her enormous stomach. I thought this would have convinced Dad to stay but all he said was "…Well I guess that's your problem now!" And just like that, he was gone. Gone forever._

I was shaken out of my memory by Riley's sudden scream of "MOMMMMMY!" I threw the card in the bin and I ran downstairs to find my mom. When I saw her, and how happy she was, it made feel really proud that I was her daughter. She looked up and smiled.  
"How's my Sammy girl?" she said. She ran over and gave me a hug. I was squashed inside her. She was enormous, huge, obese ever since my dad abandoned her. But it wasn't always a bad thing. Hugs from her were the best!  
"I'm fine," I smiled as she kissed me on the cheek. "Is it alright if I tent out tonight in Vern's back field?"  
"That Tessio kid?" she asked, "The cute one that's obsessed with pennies?"  
I burst out laughing. "Yep, that's him."  
"Anyone else gonna be there, Sam?"  
"Just Chris, Gordie and Teddy."  
"Will that arrogant dueschbag Ace Merrill be there?"  
I shuddered. "Mum, if he takes one step in Vern's house, I swear I will call the Pest Control!"  
My Mum laughed. "That's my girl. I'm fine with it. You all ready to go?"  
Just as I was about to respond, the doorbell rang. "I'LL GET IT!" Riley yelled as he wobbled over to open the door. I followed him and heard him yell out who was there:

"CHRISSSSSSSYYYYYYY!"


	3. Chapter 3: All Packed?

Chapter 3  
**Guys, I'm really desperate for some reviews. PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE!**

**All Packed?  
**All I did was stand there as I listened. Just watching Chris. "Hey, Riley, whatcha been up to?" Chris asked.  
Jumping up and down, Riley said, "Come on! You gotta see a story I wrote." Riley grabbed Chris' hand and dragged him into the kitchen, where me and my mum where.  
"Hello, Chris," my Mum beamed. Chris smiled and replied with just as much enthusiasm, "Hello, Mrs. Daylife." He then turned to me and said softly, "Hi, Sam."  
"Hey, Chris," I replied just as softly. Just as we were getting locked in a gaze, Riley pulled me and Chris up the stairs.  
As my brother dragged us up, I turned to Chris. "What are you doing here?" "I was going to pick Gordie up but while I'm here I might as well bring you too," he said. "Why did you wanna pick him up?" I asked. "Oh," Chris said, "He's been feeling a little suicidal lately. A little more than usual..."  
That wasn't good news. Gordie would always contemplated suicide in front of us but he, fortunately, never acted on it. Once we got to my room, Riley pulled out the piece of paper and handed it to Chris. "You see, Chris? You read, you read!"  
Chris brought the paper closer and screwed up his eyes. He obviously had problems reading the lines of mess.  
"Uh…Riley," Chris said softly, "I can't really read it." Immediately, Riley's eyes widened. His mouth dropped. Tears began to swim in his eyes. Then, he gave Chris the lower lip and revealed his gums. And before you knew it, Riley was sobbing hysterically.  
As Riley continued to cry, Chris quickly said, "Oh, I'm sorry, Riley. I can see it now. Yeah, I can read it." When Riley began crying even more, Chris actually picked him up and soothed, "Shhh. Shhh. Shhh. It's alright, Riley. Don't cry. I'm here, you're alright." I couldn't help but smile. Chris was so cute!  
Riley rubbed his eyes and said "You don't like my story!" "No, no, no, I love it," Chris whispered, "How about you read it to me?" Riley rubbed his eyes again and softly said "Okay." Chris then put Riley down and listened to the three year old speak.  
After Riley had told the story, Chris cheered and clapped. "That was awesome," said Chris, "Skin it!" Riley then ran his palm down Chris' and did it again. That was our handshake, kind of.  
"Oh and I thought of a really good ending," Riley said. "Yeah, what is it?" I asked. "After you fix the bird, you and Sammy kiss each other!" he said. Then the awkward silence dawned again.  
"That's um… that's a great ending, Riley," Chris finally said. "Why don't you go downstairs?" Then, Riley gave all the signs again-tears, widening eyes, lower lip. And before I knew it, he was crying again.  
Chris hugged him and said, "I'm sorry, Riley, I didn't mean it like that." "You don't want me here! You don't like me!" he whined. "No, no, Riley," soothed Chris, "I just want to spend some time with Sam."  
Then, a smile formed on Riley's lips. "Why?" he said, "Are you gonna kiss her?" He then began to laugh hysterically.  
Oh, God. Why did I tell my brother all of my secrets? When Chris and I were left alone, Chris turned to me. "So… your brother is quite the writer, isn't he?  
"Yeah," I replied meekly. I just looked at Chris. He was such a great guy and I couldn't bear to think that he likes Mandy more than me. I let my thoughts show on my face.  
"Everything ok?" Chris asked me. "Yeah, I'm fine," I said. But Chris knew me…and my problems.  
"It's about Mandy, isn't it?" he asked. "I'm sorry," I said." "I told her to stop giving you guys a hard time," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder. Little did he know that when he placed his smooth hand on my shirt he sent a thousand bolts of energy running in my veins.  
"It's fine," I said, "We should go now."  
He nodded. I began packing my bag. I came across a notebook and put it in my bag.  
"Why did you put a notebook in your bag?" Chris asked.  
Then a thought popped into my head: Shouldn't I bring food? I thought about it for a moment, and then figured that Gordie will probably bring something from that strict diet he had. I picked up my sleeping bag and slung it over my shoulder. "All packed, Mr. Chambers?"  
Chris nodded. "Ready when you are!" He flashed one of those amazing smiles and we walked downstairs. Once we got downstairs, Riley was helping Mom make a chocolate cake. Only, he wasn't really helping. He banged an egg on the bowl which somehow managed to get on Riley's pants.  
Mom ran over to help him. As she attended to him, I said "Mum, Chris and I are leaving now."  
My Mum rushed over and enveloped me in her hug. Riley came running over and wrapped his arms around my knees.  
Riley smiled, showing his baby teeth again. I then kissed the top of his head, did the same to my mom, and walked out the door with Chris.  
Gordie came out of his door as we did, wearing his brother's Yankee cap. He was red-eyed and breathing heavily. He then wiped his eyes and I know he had been crying. At least he hadn't had another anxiety attack.  
"What's wrong, Gordie?" I asked as I reached the gate and waited for him.  
Gordie sniffled and looked down. "Nothing. It's just Dad being Dad."  
Chris scoffed. "What a dickhead! I know how you feel. This is what my Dad did to me with his beer bottle."  
He lifted up his shirt and against Chris' perfectly toned abs was a long, scabby scar that looked painful. I winced.  
Chris and I began walking down the road, presuming Gordie was behind us. When we didn't hear any footsteps from behind, we turned around. Gordie went through the gate and closed it. He began walking but after barely a step, he went back, checked the gates lock, opened it and locked it again. He did this over and over again. I sighed. Gordie always had these fears that he didn't do something. Some guys at school enjoyed seeing his tormented face and would move one pencil in his perfectly lined row of pencils just to bother him.  
Chris came over to Gordie and threw his arm around his shoulder. Gordie looked him in the face. "It's okay, Gordie," he said. Gordie gave him a sad smile and threw his head on Gordie's shoulder as we began to walk. I realised Gordie was wearing a hoodie.  
"Why are you wearing a jacket, Gordie?" I asked.  
"Oh, uh-" he said, dumbfound, "I-I'm really cold."  
"What?" Chris said, "It's 33 degrees."  
"I SAID I'M COLD, GUYS!" Gordie suddenly yelled. I was taken aback. We stopped walking. Gordie then covered his forearms. I realised he was trying to hide his cuts. I sighed. Poor Gordie!  
"I'm sorry, guys," Gordie pleaded.  
"It's fine," Chris said. "Yeah," I said, "All our bodies are different."  
I could of slapped myself right then and there. Despite that being the cheesiest quote ever, Gordie suddenly got insecure about his body and wrapped the jacket around his shirt.  
We continued walking for a while until Chris interjected "Can we stop by Maple Drive? I want to show you guys something."  
I got excited. ""Oooh, what is it?" I asked.  
Chris wagged his finger and smiled. "Eh eh eh. You're just going to have to wait."  
I sighed and headed into town with Gordie and Chris. Tomorrow was Labor Day of 1959. Little did I know that nothing would be the same between me and my best friends again.


	4. Chapter 4: Like Brother, Like Sister

**Chapter 4: Bitch to Bitch**

"Come on, man, what is it?" Gordie asked impatiently as we stopped behind a diner. Chris looked around to make sure there was nobody watching and reached to his sleeping bag. Before I knew it, he was showing a gun .45 right before us. He handed it to Gordie and said, "You wanna be the Lone Ranger or the Cisco Kid?" "Walking talking Jesus!" Gordie whispered as he turned the gun over and over in his smooth hands. He looked at as if it were a card telling his future. "Where'd you get it?" "Hawked it from my old man's beareau. It's a .45." Gordie rolled his eyes. "I can see that." He then lined the gun up with a garbage bin and put his fingers between the trigger. He moved it and made a sound with his mouth, pretending to shoot. I smiled: he looked so cute when he did that! I turned to Chris. "Chris, you sure that bringing a pistol on this trip is a good move?" Chris shrugged and screwed his AMAZING features. "Why not?" I leant in closer to Chris and whispered through gritted teeth "You know...Gordie..." Chris gave me a strange look so I mimicked myself as Gordie and put an imaginary gun to my head and shot myself. Chris then realised I was trying to tell him that that gun might end Gordie's life. I wasn't so sure just in case Gordie did want to kill himself on this trip. Chris gave a little scoff and pointed to Gordie. "Gordo will be fine. Look at him, he's a natural." Gordie looked over at Chris and me and asked Chris, "Is it loaded?" Chris laughed. "Hell, no, who do you think I am?" At that, Gordie clicked the safety off and pulled the trigger… and before we knew it…

BANG!

…a bullet flew out of the gun and smacked the garbage can. Gordie, Chris and I all screamed at the top of our lungs, "JESUS!" and ran off as fast as we could. "HOLY CRAP!" I kept on screaming. Chris yelled, "GORDIE DID IT! GORDIE LACHANCE IS SHOOTING UP CASTLE ROCK!" "SHUT UP!" Gordie shrieked. Chris laughed as he fled off. Behind us, I could hear a woman yelling, "Hey, who did that? Who's letting cherry bombs off out here?" When we were finally far away from the diner, I heard Chris laughing. Gordie looked pretty pissed…but still cute. I was pissed out of my brain! I grabbed Chris by the shirt and pinned him up against the wall. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, CHAMBERS?" I yelled at him. Chris was began to squirm but I held on tighter. "Sam, calm down! Let go! She just thought it was fire crackers or something." It was Gordie's time to get angry. "I DON'T CARE! THAT WAS A MEAN JOKE, CHRIS!" "Please," said Chris. He faced both of us with honest, pleading eyes which made me melt on the spot. "I didn't know the gun was loaded," he said. I stared at him, hard. "You swear?" "Yeah, I swear." Gordie cut in with, "On your mother's name?" Chris yelled "Yeah." "Even if she goes to hell, 'cause you LIED?" I intoned dangerously. Chris was starting to get extremely annoyed. "Don't get so heavy on me, I swear." Gordie and I looked at each other and nodded. I was able to take in that face I loved. We both held up our pinkies, looked Chris square in the eyes and intoned "Pinkie swear?" Chris held his pinkie and said, "I pinkie swear." He interlocked pinkies with both me and Gordie. "Well, well, well. If it isn't the worst duo since Mickey and Minnie," snarled a voice from behind. We turned around and saw Mandy walking up the street. She pushed me and Gordie out of the way and planted a kiss on Chris' face. "Hey, babe." I was going to throw up! Chris looked uncomfortable and pushed her away.

"Mandy, be nice to my friends," Chris said. Mandy wore a fake, porcelain smile and said "Okay."

She turned around to face Gordie and I and said "you know, I am so nice that I am going to invite you to a little loser club in heard of called 'The People Who God Hates!' The group excepts losers and gaybos so invite Buddy Holly and Einstein's love child and what you get when an elephants eats a year supply of food."

After referencing Ted and Vern, she turned to me and said "Maybe you and Elephant Man could go together seeing as you're both mortally obese. Just be careful not to eat all the food in one go."

"MANDY! STOP IT!" Chris yelled. Mandy turned around and laughed. "Or what?" "Or else I'm calling off that date," Chris said with a smile.

Gordie and I shot our attention to Chris. Did he really just say that? He had planned to go on a date with Mandy to stop her pestering so would he blow it off? Could I have a chance with the boy of my dreams?

Mandy looked as shocked as I was. "You don't want to break off our date or-" "Or what?" said Chris. He then smiled at Mandy's defeated look. "No date for you, bitch!" Chris sang.

I tried so hard not to laugh. I was happy, relieved…shocked. Not just because Mandy got a kick up the ass but because I may have a chance with my crush.

Mandy was shocked…but she suddenly smirked. She clicked her fingers.

Then, all of a sudden, behind us snuck up the meanest jerks in town, Ace Merrill, and Chris's brother, Eyeball. Ace reached up and yanked Gordie's cap off his head.

"Come on, man, my brother gave me that!" Gordie protested.

Ace just smirked and continually held the hat out of Gordie's reach. "See what you get for messing with my girl," Ace laughed through his mouth with a cigarette hanging from the lip.

Chris was shocked. He turned to Mandy and said "Wait, you never told me that you were close to Ace!" "Because I was saving him just in case you blew me off," replied Mandy, her same porcelain smile coming into place, "See, Chris...everything comes at a price." I looked at Mandy with anger and said "I can see why your friends, you bitch!" She looked at me with anger and I smirked back.

Gordie was still trying to retrieve his cap. "Give it to me! COME ON, MAN, THAT'S MINE!" he screamed at him. Ace just shoved Gordie out of the way and he landed with a sharp fall to the gravel. That made Chris angry. "You're a real asshole, you know that?"

Ace advanced on Chris and I stepped in between them. "I'll send you to hell before you hurt him, Retard" I spat venomously at Ace.

"Ooooh. Not very polite, are they, Eyeball?" Ace asked, turning to Eyeball.

Eyeball just laughed menacingly. "Now, Sammy, I know you didn't mean to insult my friend."

I scoffed. "Jeez, Fatass, I'm surprised you even knew that was an insult!"

With that, Eyeball shoved me to the ground and pinned me there, and Ace did the same to Chris. "Oh, crap," I thought as Eyeball lit a cigarette and held it up to my face.

"Take it back kid," Eyeball whispered dangerously in my ear.

I fought to keep Eyeball off of me, but he just held me down even harder. "You wouldn't hurt a girl, would you Eyeball?" I mumbled as he nearly shoved my face into the sidewalk.

Gordie was just standing at our side yelling, "Come on, cut it out." Eyeball ignored him and replied to my comment.

"By the way you act I don't think you're a girl," he sneered, "Playing with four loser boys who are you're only friends because girls hate you."

He let me go. I held up my middle finger right in Eyeball's face. Eyeball growled but I gave him a smirk that read "Wouldn't hurt a girl, would you Fatty Boomba?"

Ace still pressed Chris against the concrete. I could feel his face of discomfort. "Take it back, kid," Ace hissed in Chris' ear. He pressed harder and Chris finally cried "Ok, ok, I take it back." Ace finally let go and Chris ran up to me and Gordie.

"Now, I feel a whole lot better about this, how about you?" Ace smirked. He lightly slapped Gordie's cheek before he stalked away.

Eyeball followed closely behind with a stupid comment, "See ya later, girls," and a confident walk away with Gordie's beloved Yankee cap hanging on his head backwards. Mandy smiled before she flicked her brunette ponytail and followed her brother.

Gordie sighed. "What's wrong with your brother, Chris?" "Don't know," he replied. "Probably angry that he didn't get a good enough make-out session with Ace," I joked. We all laughed.

"C'mon," said Chris. We began walking down the road. "Hey you guys," I said out of the blue, "I just realised that both of you are single." Gordie and Chris smiled at each other and skinned their hands.

I also realised that two of my crushes were both single. I didn't think much of it but if I knew how it would have changed my life…I would have taken serious thought to it.


	5. Chapter 5: The Beginning of the Quest

**HEY GUYS! So I got a review from Lily, the guest. I'm sorry it took so long to get your review. I don't check the reviews cause I never get them! But I have been considering your character Dana and I'm pleased to announced she will be in the Chapter 7! I've already gotten the story written down but it might need some re-editing. Also, if you are happy with it, this is how she will /p/h-bvuJgYLh/#**

**Chapter 5: The Beginning of the Quest**

"Well, what do we need a pistol for, anyway?" Vern said. We were now all together and had officially started our quest.  
"It's spooky sleeping out at night in the woods. We might see a bear," Chris explained. He turned to Gordie and and quipped, "Or a garbage can."  
I laughed, and Gordie eyed me knowingly. We were locked in a gaze. I smiled. He returned it with his beautiful teeth. I got lost until I saw Chris. He seemed uncomfortable for some reason so I cleared my throat and turned away to Vern. I noticed something coming out of his pocket.  
"Hey, Verno, what's that in your pocket?" I asked.  
Vern smiled triumphantly. "I brought a comb!" he said, bringing the comb out of his pocket.  
Chris looked at Vern as if he was the weirdest person in the world. "What the hell are we gonna need a comb for?"  
Vern looked a little sad. "Well, if we get on TV, we wanna look good, don't we?"  
Gordie rolled his eyes. "That's a lot of thinking, Vern."  
Vern grinned, "Thanks!"  
I rolled my eyes. Vern just didn't understand the sarcasm of the statement. In fact, he couldn't understand any sarcastic statement.  
Finally, we arrived at the train tracks. "How far do you think it's gonna be?" I asked.  
Chris moved his head to the side and studied the tracks long and hard. "If we take the tracks all the way into Harlow… it'd be about 20 miles. That sound right to you, Gordo?"  
Gordie nodded. Gordie knew all the train times. He took a train to school and had a compulsive fear of missing it and not going to school, which sometimes triggered an anxiety attack. "Yeah. Yeah, it might even be 30."  
Vern sighed. "Jeez, maybe we should just hitchhike."  
Teddy scoffed, "No way."  
"Why not?" Vern asked as we started walking, "We could hitch to that street by the Shiloh church, then down the Back Harlow Road; we'll be there by sundown!"  
"That's pussy," Teddy explained, finalizing the issue.  
"Hey, it's a long way," Vern grumbled as we walked along.  
"Did your mother ever have any kids that lived?" Teddy asked.  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
I sighed and turned back. "Shut up and leave each other alone."  
Teddy laughed. "I don't think I could leave Vern alone…but I sure as hell can't shut up!"  
I rolled my eyes and laughed as we walked on. We walked for a couple hours, singing the theme from "Palladin" all the way. Then, Vern asked the million dollar question: "Hey, I'm hungry, who's got the food?"  
Teddy stopped dead in his tracks. "Oh, shit! Did anybody bring anything?"  
Chris shrugged. "Not me. Gordie?"  
Gordie shook his head. "I got up early and had dinner at 5am, lunch at 10am and decided to take a quick snack before we left. How about you, Sam?"  
I put my hands on my hips. "What the hell am I, your slave?"  
"Oh, great. That's just great," Teddy sighed. "What are we supposed to do? Eat our feet?"  
Chris looked shocked. "You mean you didn't bring anything either?"  
"Well shit, this wasn't my idea! This was Vern's idea!" Teddy then advanced on Vern. "Why didn't you bring something?"  
"What am I supposed to do, think of everything? I brought the comb!" Vern defended himself, holding the comb for all to see.  
"Oh, great, what did you bring a comb for? You don't even have any hair!"  
"I brought it for you guys!"  
"HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY!" Gordie yelled, breaking the scuffle between Vern and Teddy. "Let's see how much money we got," he suggested, and we all sat down and emptied our pockets. "I got $1.02," he said. "$0.68 from Chris… $0.60 from Teddy… $0.69 from Sam…" We all looked at Vern. Vern dejectedly put his money in Gordie's hand. Gordie counted it all up. "…. $0.07, Vern?"  
Vern shrugged. "I haven't found my pennies yet."  
Gordie shook his head. "Well, $3.69's not bad-" Teddy interrupted with a laugh. "Yeah, we all know .69 isn't bad!" He cracked up laughing as I scoffed.  
Gordie continued. "Quidicello's is just down the road, past the junkyard. We can get some stuff there while we're refilling our canteens at the junkyard."  
"Train coming," Chris warned. We all leapt off the train tracks as fast as we could, even though the train was miles away. All of us jumped off the tracks…except for Teddy.


	6. Chapter 6: A Really Good Time

**YES! So Dana is in the next chapter! And yes Lilly, she will be in the train part. Post a review Lilly if you want Dana to do something while at the train tracks. K KEEP READING!**

**Chapter 6: A Really Good Time**

At first, we all just stood there, knowing that Teddy would eventually jump off the tracks soon. But a few moments went by… and Teddy didn't move. "Teddy, come on, quit messing around," I scolded him.  
Teddy shook his head. "No." He threw his sleeping bag over to us. "I'm gonna dodge it."  
Chris said sternly, "Teddy, come on, man. Get off the tracks, man, you're crazy!"  
Teddy, however, just ignored us. He seemed to be off in his own world. He kept on murmuring, "Train dodge. Dig it."  
Gordie, Vern, and I were just looking back and forth at each other not knowing what to do, but Chris was the only one ready to spring into action. "Get the hell off the tracks, Teddy! Do you want to get yourself killed?"  
Teddy just kept on ignoring us. "Just like the beach at Normandy," he whispered, and started firing an imaginary machine gun.  
Oh, God, not the Normandy thing again. You see, before Teddy's father went crazy, he was a soldier in the Army and had stormed the beach at Normandy, defeating all evil in Teddy's eyes. It was the only thing that showed Teddy's Dad was once sane and he had stayed loyal to the fact ever since the ear-incident.  
Finally, Chris leapt into action. He dashed onto the tracks and wrestled Teddy away from the vehicle just as the train passed by. My heart leapt into my throat as I watched the train run behind the heads of Chris and Teddy as they fist fought before Gordie and Vern broke it up. I ran in and stepped between the both of them. "STOP IT, BOTH OF YOU!" I screamed as the train rumbled past.  
Teddy screamed angrily, "I COULD'VE DODGED IT!"  
Chris screamed back, "I WAS JUST TRYING TO SAVE YOUR ASS, MAN! DO YOU WANNA KILL YOURSELF? IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT, GODDAMNIT? YOU TRIED TO KILL YOURSELF!"  
We all sobered up after Chris said that. It was true that Teddy really could have been killed if Chris hadn't saved him.  
"Teddy, we couldn't live if we had lost you forever," I gently reminded him.  
Teddy glared at me. "Stop being such a girl, Daylife." With that, he turned to Chris and snarled, "I don't need no babysitter. I could've dodged it," he murmured as he started to stalk off.  
Chris ran up and grabbed Teddy's shoulder. "Listen, Teddy, you can dodge it on the way back, man." He then held out his hand. "Peace. Skin it."  
Teddy paused for a while, and then skinned Chris's hand. We all picked up our bags and started to set off once more. As we walked, Gordie stood near me. "I'm sorry about what Teddy said."  
I shrugged. "Hey, I can't help my gender."  
Gordie laughed and put his arm around me in a kind of half hug. "You're so cute, Sam," he said before sprinting off to Chris.  
Did I just die and went to heaven? Teddy and Vern ran up to me and noticed how happy I was. "Someone's hitting their climax, aren't they now?" he asked.  
I said, "Shut up, Duchamp," and punched him in the elbow.  
Vern turned to Teddy, angered. "How come she gets to punch you?"  
Teddy just shrugged. "She's a girl-not that you aren't, Vern. Didn't your mother ever teach you that it's not polite to hurt women?"  
I laughed. "Theodore DuChamp, you are crazy."  
Again, we just kept on walking, until we finally reached the junkyard owned by Milo Pressman. No kid in Castle Rock went near that place because, not only did Milo live there, but so did his dog, Chopper. Milo had not only taught Chopper to sic, but specific parts of the male anatomy, so any guy who was trying to escape the junkyard would hear the cry, "CHOPPER, SIC BALLS."  
When we finally arrived at the junkyard, neither Milo nor Chopper were anywhere in sight; there were just tons and tons of broken down and rusty cars. "Well, Vern, looks like your mom's been out driving again," Teddie dryly commented.  
Vern scoffed, "Oh, very funny."  
"STAND BACK, MEN!" Teddy yelled as he tossed his sleeping bag over the fence like a bomb. He made an explosion sound, and then yelled, "TAKE NO PRISONERS!" He and Vern leapt over the fence, but Chris, Gordie and I stayed back, watching Teddy and Vern run off. Finally, we climbed the fence. When we landed, Gordie spoke our thoughts: "Teddy's crazy."  
I laughed and sarcastically said, "HA! Really?" Chris laughed. "He probably won't even live to be 20, I bet."  
"Remember that time you saved him when he almost fell out of the tree house?" Gordie asked as we continued walking.  
Chris grew a bit reflectional for a minute. "Yeah. You know, I dream about that sometimes. Except in the dream, I always miss him; I just get a couple of his hairs and down he goes."  
Chris then turned to Gordie. "Wanna race, man?"  
"Nah, I don't wanna," Gordie said, looking down sadly. Although Gordie was quite a fast runner, running was the only thing he wasn't number 1 at and it really affected his self-esteem. But why? I mean he topped the class academically, he has a ripped body, he is always treated nicely and is decent at sport and other co-curricular. I guess being like Denny really took an influence on him and the molestation and the death really didn't help.  
"Oh, come on, man, right to the pump!" Chris pleaded.  
"No, I don't think so- GO!" Gordie yelled as he and Chris broke into a run. I rolled my eyes and just watched them.  
"YOU ARE A DEAD MAN, LACHANCE!" Chris yelled as he tried to catch up to Gordie. "IT LOOKS LIKE LACHANCE HAS HIM THIS TIME!"  
I finally jogged a bit and heard Chris yell "BUT WHAT'S THIS?" He passed Gordie as he yelled, "CHAMBERS IS MAKING HIS MOVE! HE COULD GO ALL THE WAY!"  
Then, Chris finally beat Gordie by a few seconds. "CHAMBERS AT THE TAPE! THE CROWD GOES WILD!"  
Vern and Teddy, who were filling their canteens with water from the pump, gave an unenthusiastic, "Yay." Gordie and Chris leant down for air as I joined them. I laughed. Gordie smiled (that beautiful smile…) and skinned my hand. He then wrapped his arms around my shoulders and walked with me.  
As I did, I saw Chris behind me. He looked at Gordie's affections and looked uncomfortable, sad…jealous.  
We then walked over to sit with Teddy and Vern and talked.  
"So, you guys been watching "The Mickey Mouse Club" lately?" Teddy asked.  
We all nodded, and then Teddy said, "I think Annette's tits are getting bigger."  
Vern looked surprised. "You think so?"  
Gordie said, "Yeah, I think so. I've been noticing lately that the "A" and the "E" are starting to bend around the sides," and he lifted his hands up to estimate of just how big Annette Funicello's tits were. This made the entire boys laugh like hell, but I just groaned.  
If there was one thing I liked about Gordie it was his humour. Before Denny died and he was molested, Gordie was known as one of the most outrageous people you would ever meet. Always laughing, always giving jokes. I guess that all changed in February. Now and then you'd hear a joke from him and hearing him laugh was like winning a trophy.  
"Oh calm down," I heard Gordie yell, "You look better." Teddy and Vern burst out laughing. I smiled and Gordie returned it. We got locked in a loving gaze until I saw Chris. He wasn't laughing or smiling…he had the same looks on his face as he did after we had raced. After giving an envious glance at Gordie, he looked down. Why was he acting so strange?  
I was awakened from my thoughts once I heard Vern remark "This is really a great time."  
"The most," Chris agreed.  
"A blast," Teddy laughed.  
It didn't mean much at first…but we all knew deep down for some unknown reason Vern was right.  
I then spoke up. "Hey Gordie, you got the time?"  
Gordie checked his watch. "Um, about 1:30."  
Vern said, "We better hurry up and get the food. Junkyard opens at 3:00. Chopper will be here."  
Chris laughed, "Oooh, sic balls!"  
I looked around at all of them. Of course none of them would risk being caught by Chopper. I sighed, "Fine, I'll do it."Bottom of Form


	7. Chapter 7: The Loony's Son

**So Lilly...DANA HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! READ ON! REVIEW MORE! THANKS! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

**Chapter 7: The Loony's son and a Growing Nature**  
I stepped into Quidicello's with all of our money pooled together in my pocket. Mr. Quidicello was standing at the counter weighing hamburger meat. I grabbed some Coke off of the shelves before stepping up to order some hamburger meat.  
Mr. Quidicello looked up at me. "Hey, aren't you Samantha Daylife?" he asked with a bit of amazement in his voice.  
I nodded. "Yup."  
Mr. Quidicello grinned. "Do you remember my niece, Dana?"  
I shook my head. What did he just say? "Was Dana your neice?"  
"Yeah, I'm related to the Merrill's," Mr Quidicello said, "She's been missing you so much!"  
"Really?" I said, "Where is Dana?"  
"Who wants me?" a voice said behind me. That's when I turned around and knew straight away who it was. Dark brown hair, brown eyes, fair skin, glasses, a centimetre shorter than Gordie, one of the prettiest girls who wasn't fake...Dana Quidicello was behind me!  
"Sam?"  
"DANA!"  
We ran into each other and were embraced in a hug.  
"Oh my god, I've missed you so much!"  
"Me too," Dana said.  
"I've still got this!" she said. She took out a necklace around her with a heart that had the letters "S&D" engraved into them.  
"Same!" I said as I took out my same one.  
Dana Merrill used to go to Saint Peters College, which was another school I would have gone to, and I met her when I was friends with Mandy. We soon became closer, even though I hated her older brother, and when we began hanging out with Chris, Gordie, Vern and Teddy, Mandy got angry and turned everyone against us. Mandy was also the reason Dana got glasses! I haven't seen her since because her Dad had to move his shop elsewhere. She was smart, shy, intelligent, good at mapping out directions, a good planner, creative, friendly, sweet, comforting.  
"How is everyone?" Dana asked.  
"All the same, except for Gordie," I replied darkly.  
"Why, what happened?" she asked, a little worried.  
"Well you know how his brother died?" Dana shook her head. "Well, the same night, he was molested in the shower by Denny's girlfriend." Dana gasped and put her hand over her mouth. "And they both died in that Jeep accident and Gordie isn't the same-he has OCD, body image issues and he cuts himself and has anxiety attacks because of the pain."  
"Oh my god, that's terrible!" Dana said, "Poor Gordie!"  
Then, out of nowhere, Gordie stepped into the store. Dana and I turned around in confusion.  
"Dana?" he said, confused.  
"Gordie!" Dana said as she rushed to him and gave him a hug. "I'm sorry about what happened," she whispered into his ear and he seemed a little comforted.  
"What the hell are you doing in here, Gordie?"  
Gordie shrugged. "The guys wanted me to make sure nothing happened to you, especially Chris. Why are you here, Dana?"  
"This is where my Dad works!" Dana said, "Why are you guys here?"  
"Oh, you know that Ray Brower kid who's missing," I said as she nodded her head, "Well, Vern knows his whereabouts and we're going to find him!"  
"Oh my god!" Dana said. She turned to Mr Quidicello and said "Dave, can I please go with Sam?"  
"Where are you going?" he asked.  
"Umm...uh-" she stuttered. Thankfully, Gordie saved the day and lied "We're going to Vern's beach house down north."  
"Okay," he said, "When are you getting back?"  
"Before sundown tomorrow," I said.  
"Sure, you can go!" he said.  
Dana and I began jumping up and down and squealing.  
"I need to go pack," Dana said as she raced away.  
I growled at Gordie's laugh and walked over to the magazine rack. As I watched Gordie buy hamburger meat from Mr. Quidicello and Dana talk to him, I browsed through the magazine covers.  
Everywhere, I saw images of pretty girls, people wanted, the boys wanted…I wanted to be. They had beautiful eyes, blossomed lips, perfectly placed eyes, smooth skin. But they were skinny…skinny, not fat like me.  
I looked down and grabbed one off the rack anyway. It was entertainment for the boys…but torture for me.  
I heard Mr. Quidicello say something: "I remember when your brother played pro ball. Man, could he throw. Father, God and Sonny Jesus."  
Oh no. I knew Gordie hated it whenever someone brought up his brother. I walked over and took him over to the corner. "I've got all the money, Gordo. I'll pay," I whispered to him gently.  
Gordie nodded, tears obviously forming in his eyes, and walked over to the door. I paid Mr. Quidicello, and Dave came running downstairs with a bag.  
"Bye, Uncle Dave," Dana said.  
"Bye," he said.  
We walked with our arms around each other, talking and talking. Dana was so attached to Gordie and I really wondered why.  
I looked to my side and saw Gordie checking out the meat inside the bag as if it had worms all over it. He peered through, spread it out, got anxious.  
"What's wrong, Gordo?"  
"Are these pork sausages? Is this clean?"  
"Why are you worrying, Gordie?" I asked.  
"Doesn't matter, you're probably sick of all my OCD stuff," he said.  
"No, I'd love to listen, I've never heard it," Dana encouraged. She really did. While others thought Gordie was just attention seeking, I really felt for him. He really is going through a tough time and I know he needs someone to lean on.  
"Doesn't matter," he said, "I was just worrying whether it was healthy and clean really."  
I nodded, although I knew deep down his fears were a lot more severe.  
"So, how's your writing going, Gordie?" Dana asked.  
"Oh it's good," he said, "I wrote a one-shot about Samson and Delilah through Delilah's eyes."  
"Cool, sounds like a good film to do!" Dana said.  
Right, forgot to tell you. Gordie wanted to be a writer and Dana wanted to be a film-writer so they've always shared that mutual interest and it brings them close. We continued walking… but we couldn't find the boys anywhere.  
"HEY! WHAT'RE YOU KIDS DOING IN HERE?" we heard a voice scream. We looked around…Milo Pressman was on the other side.  
Gordie, Dana and I looked at each other. "Oh, crap," we said at the same time, and sprang into a run. Up ahead, we saw the boys leaning against the fence, screaming for us. Chris, I could see, was especially worried while Vern and Teddy looked confused and said "Is that Dana Merrill?"  
And then we heard awful words come from Milo's mouth… "CHOPPER, SIC 'EM! SIC 'EM, BOY!"  
Now, I wasn't too worried about Chopper; after all, I had no balls for him to sic. But I kept running like the wind just the same. Gordie was steps ahead of me. Gordie reached the gate, screaming like a banshee. I finally reached the fence at the same pace as Dana, and climbed over. Gordie reached out his hand and helped me up. We jumped over the fence. Chris took my arms in his arms.  
"Samantha," he said, paranoid, "Are you alright?" I knew he was worried because he always called me Samantha when he was.  
"I'm fine, Chris, I'm fine," I said. He helped me up and we turned to the fence.  
"Dana, why-how-what?" Teddy stammered.  
"I'll tell you later," Dana said.  
When the dust finally cleared, we saw the legendary Chopper in full view. He was a terrifying, vicious… golden retriever?  
I couldn't help but burst out laughing. My laughs were followed by those of my friends. "Hey there, Choppy," I whispered as I let him lick the tips of my fingers. He was actually rather cute!  
Of course, the boys had to have some fun with him and they all immediately began taunting Chopper. "Hey, kiss my ass, Choppy! Kiss my ass!" Teddy screamed in delight as he pulled his pants down and shook his butt in Chopper's face.  
"HEY, YOU KIDS!" Milo yelled as he ran over to us. "Stop teasing that dog, you hear me?"  
"Shut up, you _dick_," Dana laughed.  
"What dick?" Teddy joked.  
"Don't you talk back to me, you little tin weasel. Duchamp's loony's son!"  
We all froze. What did he just say? Teddy went from laughing hysterically, to just becoming a stone mask, letting hurt and anger become his expression.  
"What did you just call me?" Teddy whispered.  
Milo said, with a malicious smirk on his face, "I know who you are. You're Teddy Duchamp; your father's a loony up in the nuthouse at Togus. He held your ear to a stove and nearly burnt it off!"  
"My father stormed the beach at Normandy," Teddy whispered, anger creeping in his tone.  
"He's crazier than a shithouse rat!" Milo yelled.  
"You call my dad a loony one more time, and I'll kill you," Teddy warned, his hands clenching into fists.  
Milo leaned in with that same pathetic grin and said in a sing-tone voice, "Loony, loony, loony, loony…"  
And that…made Teddy snap. Teddy screamed and leapt onto the fence. "I'M GONNA RIP YOUR HEAD OFF AND SHIT DOWN YOUR NECK!" he began screaming. Chris and Gordie yanked him down.  
Milo simply replied, "Bring him back! Let the kid fight his own battles!"  
Gordie yelled, "Sure, you'd only outweigh him by 200 pounds, FATASS!"  
Milo pointed at Gordie. "I know you: you're LaChance! An attention-seeking, molested self-harmer who needs everything to be perfect and always need to exercise or else his Dad will go off at him for not dying instead of Denny and will just have a bloody anxiety attack!" I looked at Gordie. Tears pooled in his eyes and he suddenly went cold. His lip began to tremble and his pupils widened. I've seen that look before. It was the look that told me the crave for a blade on his skin. Gordie shakily brought his hand to his left arm and dug his nails deep into his flesh, sending a white scar across his wrist. I grabbed hold of his hand and pulled it back and whispered "It's okay, Gordie."  
"I know all of you guys!" Milo continued. His eyes then fell on me. "And you…you ought to be ashamed of yourself, you young lady."  
"What's that supposed to mean, fatass?" I yelled at him angrily.  
"You sure as hell know what I mean. Playing with boys, straying from girls," he intoned evilly, "It's obvious why your father abandoned you; he didn't want you to turn out like your mother-obese and huge."  
"What the hell are you talking about Sam's mother for, you twat-hole-of-a-cunt?" Dana spat at Milo while I tried my hardest to not pound the crap out of him.  
"You heard me," he said. His eyes turned back on me. "You're growing a stomach yourself. You'll be abandoned by girls and turn to food." He then leaned in closer and I could smell the smoke of cigars and drips of alcohol on his breath. "Soon enough you'll be a _fat_ nuisance and all the boys will abandon you too."  
I then did exactly what Teddy had done. I grabbed a stick and screamed "YOU FUCKING RETARD, I'M GONNA KILL YOU AND YOUR FUCKING LITTLE BITCH DOG, YOU SHITHEAD, HOMO FATASS!" I screamed as I almost leapt over the fence. I then poked the stick through the wires and plunged it into Milo's face, pleasured by the scream he gave.  
Chris yanked me off of the fence. "He's not worth it, Sam" Chris said. He turned to Milo and said "…why don't you fix your cars and sic your little dog, ASSFACE?"  
Milo breathed angrily. "All of your fathers are going to be getting calls from me, no-good Chambers!" he yelled at us. He then brought his face dangerously close to Teddy's and whispered, "Except for the loony up in Togus."  
Once again, Teddy screamed as he pounced on the gate, but Chris dragged him away before anything happened. Teddy was still screaming, "MY FATHER STORMED THE BEACH AT NORMANDY! HE STORMED A BEACH, YOU FUCKING RETARD!"  
I didn't pay much attention to his screams. I just paid attention to what Milo had said to me. Was I really gaining a stomach? Was I ending up like my mom? Were Mandy's claims true? I looked down. I immediately felt body dysmorphia, though I didn't know it. My legs were big thighs. Rolls of fat showed as I walked. No wonder I lost for the first time in aerobics on Saturday…it was because I was becoming my mother.  
"Teddy, shhh, hush. It'll be okay," I heard Chris comfort Teddy. That's what I loved about Chris; he always gave support when you needed it.  
Teddy cried, "He ranked my old man… he ranked my old man," over and over again. I felt so sorry for him as I saw him wipe away tears. Still, I wondered how Teddy could care so much about his father who burnt off my ear when I have an undying hate for my Dad who I hadn't seen in three years!  
Gordie came over to me and focused on my face, his big eyes watching me in concern. "Sam, are you alright?"  
I shook my head. "I'm fine, Gordie, I really am." Gordie apparently didn't believe me, so he wrapped his hand over my shoulder and held me close, the way I love it. "We all still love you, Sam. Don't we?" he screamed, facing all the boys. They yelled "yes" in agreement, even Teddy.  
Gordie faced me and said "See. We all love you." He let go and ran back to comforting Teddy.  
Loved me? What did he mean? Loved me as a friend or IN love with me! Maybe he really did love me? But what about Chris? Did he feel the same? Then I asked myself the million dollar question…who did I love…Chris…or Gordie? All the while, I hadn't seen Dana's look of jealousy as Gordie talked to me.


End file.
